Given the circumstances this year, I think there’s reason for optimism. The young players seem to settle down at the end of the year. From what I observed:

• The number of unforced turnovers was greatly reduced; especially passes to the interior
• More (and better) shots taken earlier in the shot clock; however, need to hit a higher percentage of open shots and finish contested layups
• We had the ability to produce sustained defensive stands; need to better take advantage of scoring droughts by other teams
• Platooning seemed to increase the comradery among the players; playing Overcash and Gumbs post-transfer announcements was a nice gesture

Next year?—some question marks:

• Maund will be hard to replace; Luma was a preseason All A10 Second team selection- will she rise to the occasion after coming off a season ending injury?; how much will MoKwuah improve (there’s a lot of potential there); is Ali Brigham the real deal? (better to temper expectations of true freshmen)
• Can Zambrotta live up to the original hype—she didn’t have a great year; how good can she be?
• How much will Hyduke and Blethen improve? Both showed flashes of brilliance, but need to be more consistent
• Are there hidden gems in the other recruits (Perea, Gingras)?; Taiwo was an under the radar recruit who played for a very small private high school and whose main sport was soccer, but there’s no question she has the most upside of anyone on the team- this was a recruiting coup. If she can straighten out her FT shooting, she’ll be an automatic double digit scorer next year. If she can develop a jump shot, she’ll be all A10 before she graduates
• Depth— any others to transfer out?; any transfers coming in?

Season’s over, so now, nothing to do but anxiously wait for next season to begin.

Jasmine Whitney 5’9” grad transfer guard from Pitt is already enrolled in school and will be eligible to play in the fall. Should be an impactful addition. I’m not willing to temper my expectations for Brigham, she’s the real deal with pedigree off the charts. Key will be players who decide or are encouraged not to return.

I've heard it all before.

You couldn't be lighter than I have been.